Eternally
by finalwish
Summary: It was hard for her to admit, but they would prevail only as a team, and she vowed that she would be there to fight too.
1. Patience

Well, well. Can you believe it? I _actually _COMPLETED a story. Yup yup, this story is completely written out already. I'll just post the chapters little by little and see how the reaction goes. Don't worry; you can trust me on this one. :D

I know, I scrapped "Healing Light." But I think it was crap anyway. This, in a way, is a reworked version of it, but not quite. So... I hope you enjoy.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia.**

Also... for Kratos/Raine fans, I have to warn you -- this story focuses on Kratos and Raine, but contains no romance. That's right. Just some mild interactions, but no romantic feelings. Yes.

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**_Patience_**

* * *

She crossed her arms and cursed at herself silently for letting her guard down. Periwinkle eyes penetrated the atmosphere like cold needles, but after four-thousand years of life, one got used to stares such as those. So he stared back. Retaining his mask, he shot her a look of cold indifference that rivaled her own fiery glare.

Moments passed, with only the ocean breezes of Altamira sweeping through the silence. Neither of them were willing to speak the first word. Unfortunately, however, Raine's suspicion finally burned a hole through her stubbornness.

"… Kratos." Her voice was hesitant, but held not the slightest quiver. The gears in her brain were cranking at lightning speed, searching for just the right words to be used in questioning the mysterious seraph.

He crossed his arms into their signature "I-am-stronger-than-you" position and snorted.

That alone was enough to fuel her suspicion into rage, but she refused to let her feelings surpass her cool demeanor. Calmly, she repeated, "Kratos. It is obvious that you have been trying to help us, so I must inform you that it would be in our benefit to know what exactly you are planning. First of all, why are you in Altamira?"

He remained completely unfazed, not even blinking before he answered. "I have no reason to reveal my purposes to you. I am an angel of Cruxis." His mind wove his next sentence flawlessly into place, successfully patching the hole of doubt that was his search for Aionis. "Telling the enemy of one's mindset is a foolish action. I thought you, of all people, would know that."

She raised an eyebrow. It wasn't as if she hadn't been expecting that kind of an answer from him.

"Please." After all, her scholarly intuition was incredibly sharp, as were her skills of observation. "Do you think I haven't noticed? You've spared us countless times. Even when you had the perfect chance to finish us, right there at the Tower of Salvation, you didn't. Now, the only question that remains unanswered the question of whose side you are on."

Stifling all his surprise with a snort, Kratos turned his head away, an act that might seem like arrogance to those who didn't know him, but was simply typical Kratos. More of his shaggy auburn bangs fell onto his face, almost completely covering his eyes, as well as any sign of emotion that was visible within them. It was an old trick of his, coupling well with his emotionless façade.

"Well, do you honestly think I would betray Lord Yggdrasill?" _Yes._

The teacher's silvery-white hair swayed lazily in the tropical wind. Kratos' unreadable face was grating on her last nerve. Pursing her lips, she inquired, "That is precisely what I am trying to figure out. When Yggdrasill wants us dead, why would you spare us? Why are you wandering Tethe'alla? And my first question – why are you _here_?"

"Cruxis needs the Chosen for Martel to awaken." His answer was straightforward and shadowed nothing of his motives, yet, he thought to himself, _this is the only bit of truth you will get._

If she had had her staff, she would've gripped it. She didn't bother to mask the frustration lingering in her eyes.

In a single moment of impatience, she let her carefully thought out words slip out faster then she had planned. "Then why won't you kill the rest of us? We cannot be of use. The only thing we are is a bother to Yggdrasill."

A sliver of disappointment lurked in a crevice of her exasperation; her patience had been sliced through in a conversation lasting less than five minutes.

Her irritation amused Kratos though, who subconsciously acknowledged the fact that his four-thousand years of experience was far greater than that of a twenty-three year old half elf. "I merely act under Lord Yggdrasill's orders. If he needs you eliminated, then that is what I shall do." Dismissing her futile attempts with yet another snort, he unfolded his arms and turned around. A faint blue-green glow emitted from his back as he sprouted his wings.

Although she hadn't expected to learn much from him, her natural craving for knowledge left her dissatisfied with her lack of answers. Squeezing in a final fruitless question, she asked, in her iciest tone, "And just where are you going now?"

Not bothering to turn around, he grunted softly and replied, "It is not for you to know."

Crystalline feathers spread, and his brooding figure soon disappeared into the sun-lined horizon.


	2. Remembrance

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia, or Regal's final line.**

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**_Remembrance_**

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_And finally, I know. _But it wasn't the complete answer, nor was it the one she'd been expecting.

The silence of the tower was slowly eating away at their spirits. Zelos had betrayed them and fought them to his death. The sight of his orange angel wings was one that lingered in their minds, as well as the pitiful words he had spoken of himself. It was hard to realize that they were being betrayed yet again, harder to watch him die, and downright painful to live with the guilt of killing him.

Raine forced herself to walk forward, but found no inspiration in her companions' dull, tired footsteps beside her. Her heart throbbed. The warm rush of friendship and trust had long been overwhelmed by Mithos' cold and bloody actions, and the incident with Zelos had only increased the ache. _He could not trust us, so he deceived us._

Lloyd's Dwarven Vows echoed in her head. _"Dwarven Vow #18: It's better to be deceived then to deceive."_

_Is it really? _Would she rather be guilt ridden until she was able to atone, or be without trust for the rest of her life?

The matters plaguing her mind were almost too much to bear. They were heading into unknown, enemy territory, and more deaths were to be expected. Heaving a sigh, she slowed her pace until she was closer to Regal and farther away from Lloyd. "Regal… I need to discuss something with you," she stated quietly.

The handcuffed man looked a little surprised when she spoke. "With me?"

"Yes… you seem like the most rational member of this group. The others are… They seem to act only upon instinct, not logic, but instinct does not always guide us on the right path." She paused, hesitating to go into her next topic. "We are heading into great danger. If we want to win, we'll have to decide whose lives take priority."

Her eyes, which were cast downward, sparkled with anxiety. The topics of life and death had never troubled her much, but with Zelos dead, she realized how vulnerable their group truly was. Lloyd wanted to save everyone, but she did not act with her heart as he did. She was a cool, logical professor, and by logic, saving everyone was impossible.

His face darkened. "I see…" he replied gravely, thoughts of Zelos rushing back into the center of his mind. "I suppose that this sort of discussion would anger Lloyd."

Raine pursed her lips and increased her grip on her rod. "… We must protect Lloyd no matter what," she informed. She shifted her eyes momentarily to glance at the young swordsman, who had shot a blast of fire from the Sorcerer's Ring to burn down a vine blocking the path. "The only force that might challenge Mithos' powers is Lloyd's special exsphere."

Regal nodded. "So it would seem. Do you have any idea what kind of power it holds?" He looked at her expectantly.

She shook her head, a tinge of curiosity towards the subject rising from the corners of her brain. "No, but it ensures us with the highest odds of winning. Without it, we don't have a chance."

He blinked slowly. "… Understood. Let us do what we must to protect Lloyd."

- - -

Regal fulfilled his promise, and Sheena had known to sacrifice herself as well. Subsequently, she had made her own sacrifice. Plunging into a complete and utter darkness had been frightening, but she was surprised when she realized that her wounds were easily cured with a single Revitalize spell. _Although, wounds don't matter much when there is no one that can save me from this place. _But she had opened up the doors for Lloyd and her remaining companions to pass through though, and that was enough to shove the thoughts of self-pity out of her mind.

She had stated it herself. _I have no regrets. _But she wasn't sure if what she had said was true anymore. _"Who said anything about sacrifices?" _Even though she didn't want to accept it, what Mithos had said was true. _"With revolution comes sacrifice…"_

_Eventually_, _they will all disappear. _All she could hope for was for Lloyd to survive and defeat Mithos in their place. That alone was all she could've asked to believe in. She knew that Lloyd wouldn't let their sacrifices go to waste. He wouldn't forget about them.

The journey would also remain in Raine's thoughts forever, even if she was stranded alone in the tower for the rest of her life.

- - -

"Healing Stream!"

Sheena's weakened body was suddenly overwhelmed with a rush of glorifying mana. She opened her almond-shaded eyes, blinking in surprise. There were only two people she knew who were able to use that healing spell, and one of them was dead. Tilting her head up, she let out a gasp.

"Kratos?!"

He sighed, taking his gloved hands off of her shoulders. "Yes?" he asked wearily.

The ninja stood up, her strength revitalized, and shot him a fierce look. The familiar feeling of hatred towards traitors was bubbling in her blood. "What do you mean, 'yes'?!" she demanded, awash with confusion. Bewilderment and shock pulsed through her veins, but it was completely recognizable; she remembered it from the time Raine had healed her in Luin, despite knowing that she was trying to assassinate Colette. "Why are you here?! Why did you heal me?! You're our enemy, aren't you?! And… Regal?! What the – why are – ?!"

Regal lowered his head, sighing softly. "… Sheena…" He glanced at Kratos, who already seemed quite frustrated with the girl despite his emotionless face.

"Calm down." The seraph dusted his palms and folded his arms.

"Calm down?! You're Lloyd's father, yet you're working against him! How can you do that?! What kind of a –"

"Sheena." Kratos didn't bother to hide the slight irritation in his voice. "If you would let me speak, I could explain to you the current situation."

"… Fine."

_Here it comes again. _If he had to explain everything to everyone as they were saved, he might as well explain everything to everyone at once. But knowing Sheena and her slightly rash manner, it wouldn't do him good to leave her hanging. "The Chosen is in the Great Seed Chamber. Her body is currently being fused with Martel's soul, which rests in the Great Seed. I am sure you know what will happen if the fusion is completed, but there isn't much time. We must hurry."

Sheena hesitated, assessing her words as to not to blurt out anything too rude or redundant again. "But why exactly are you doing this?" she asked skeptically. "Why are you helping us?"

It had always been an in-and-out phase of believing and not believing in Mithos for him, but he had vowed not to change his views any longer. Besides, Lloyd was his son, and, as Sheena had been saying, what kind of a father would he be if he fought against him? Still, there were far too many other reasons for his choice, and Kratos didn't have the time to state them all. "… I have long since realized the faults in Mithos' vision."

The summoner's dark eyebrows raised suspiciously. "Then why…" she paused, then shook her head when it occurred to her that the point had been made, "ah, I won't question it anymore." Kratos thanked her silently for that. "But what if we're too late?"

He began striding towards the exit. "I have another solution. But first, our priority is to save the others."

She nodded. "… Yeah. Anyway, thanks for saving me."


End file.
